Holkem (Holkham) it would seem wasn't very exciting for me on the 20th February 1991 (I was 12) as I noted down the 'best bag' as being Egyptian Goose. It had already been a great day though...
We saw a large flock of wood pigeon hopping to see a Stock dove but they were all wood pigeon.
We all walked the wrong way, up the back of the hill, I don't know how we managed that (me neither, didn't realise there was a wrong way up a hill!) wasn't many birds on the water so we went to look at the woods, we saw lots of corsican pine, holm oak and polypody (good to see I was botanising back then too).
Wesaw a bullfinch and its pair calling somewere were we couldn't see it after a while we headed back to the car and went home with a current life list of two hundred and five! (208 if you count those three plants Little Graeme - but you'll have to wait nearly 20 years to put your PSL list together).
Next up I'm going to go back a bit to 1990 when my records began. In fact my first entry is of a Leach's Storm-petrel, a bird I have not seen since. Except a dead one in Henfield.
Another lunch time excursion albeit of a far more surprising nature. I found out that there was some White Ramping Fumitory under a hedge on the road from Woods Mill into Henfield, a road verge I have driven past many times over the last few years. I pulled in and found the Fumitory almost immediately, considerably larger than Common Fumitory and quite an attractive species, a little like a giant Fine-leaved Fumitory. But that was not before I saw lots of these naturalised plants, left over from Borrer's collection, Rosy Garlic and yet another species I can add to my list.
I was amazed that this thin slither of land that I have driven past for more than three years had such botanical and historical significance. I'm even more amazed that no one else at the Trust has ever told me about it! There is even a little interpretation board. Not only that, I spotted a tiny micro moth that I didn't recognise, which is Glyphipterix fuscoviridella. So, a fifteen minute trip into Henfield to get a sandwich and I ended up adding three species to my list (3294)! I leave you with a shot of the bank and a close up of the interpretation board that you can just about read if you click on it.
As I was coming into work today I noticed these two micro moths getting jiggy with it on the wall. They are Agonopterix heracliana and they are common at this time of year here at Woods Mill but I usually only see them in the moth trap. The larvae feed on various umbellifers and the adults overwinter, re-emerging in the spring. Just a quick one tonight as I am off to give a talk on the Woods Mill CBC for Henfield birdwatch. I'm off for some bat sound-analysis training in London tomorrow too, so a busy weekend but the Slaty-backed Gull is calling and a trip to Rainham may be on the cards for Sunday. Anyway, I'm just glad I got to use a quote from the Chuckle Brothers on my blog.
I forgot my lunch today and so a trip to Henfield to get a sandwich from Truffles replaced my usual walk around Woods Mill. As I stepped out of the sandwich bar I spotted this Herald on the other side of the road next to a man waiting for the bus. This has got to be one of my favourite moths, I love the bright white dots and stripey legs. My first encounter of these was in caves in the Peak District, lots of them, along with loads of Tissues that I have only ever seen once in Sussex (at light at Mill Hill).
The moth trap is out at Woods Mill tonight for the first time this year, I can't wait! I can only liken moth-trapping to how Christmas morning felt when I was a kid! Of course, I will only be looking at micros and by-catch if I want to see something new at this time of year. Oh, the photo is with the Canon by the way.
Courtesy of Bryan Michie I finally connected with a live Stag Beetle! He gets them in his garden in Henfield and he gave me a shout so I called in on the way past. This huge male was over 6cm long and absolutely dwarfed another male that was around 4cm long. This smaller individual had actually been caught and dispatched in a spider web. They really are impressive, much more active than I expected, it looked like a clockwork toy. I couldn't resist a shot next to the tattoo. I am a bit puzzled by the hairy, yellow, triangular appendage between the mandibles, I wonder what this is for? Anyway, thanks Bryan for showing me Britain's largest beetle. Awesome.
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